Fall, Leafs, and Luna
by CAPJHMPAgirl
Summary: Gill has messed up his relationship with Luna. Fall means change right? So is this for the better or can he swallow his pride and patch things up. This is my entry for BIDDYAUTHOR'S FORUM, STORY HARVEST. Note I do not own picture for story, credit goes to whoever it belongs to.


_**Author's note: I entered the STORY HARVEST forum leafs contest for this piece. Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon.**  
_

_Fall is the season of change, melancholy, where things are slowly dying. Just like my love with Luna_, Gill thought to himself. He walked from his house slowly towards the tailoring shop. _She won't be there, just like usual. Why would it matter anyway, every time I try to apologize we end up arguing again_. He peered through the window as he passed the shop. Luna was nowhere to be seen. Gill continued walking, heading towards the Flute Fields Bridge. Something about today compelled him to go seek tranquility in the peaceful meadows. He passed the farmer's ranch and continued to tread down the path. Colorful leafs were falling everywhere. He finally reached the bridge and stared off into the stream. There was a bluish tint reflecting and an image of Luna's crystal blue eyes flashed into his mind. Gill shook his head to rid himself of the thought. I need to distract myself from thinking about her. _Maybe I should think about my paperwork. Wait, isn't that what started this whole mess. _

The unhappy memory overtook Gill's mind. It happened on Fall 2. Luna came in smiling about something. _Goddess she looked beautiful, but I was too stupid to notice then_. Her crimson red outfit fit her perfectly and made her look like a rose in full bloom. Her pink hair was in her usual pigtails, with daises meticulously place in them. Her smile was glowing. The conversation echoed in Gill's mind.

"Hello Gilly, do you know what today is?" Luna asked sweetly.

Gill looked up from his paperwork. "Luna I'm a bit busy, can you leave your guessing games for later."

Luna's hand rose to her hips. In a less sweet, but still polite tone she spoke, "Gill, this will only take a minute, can't you take a break, just for a little while. For me?"

"No Luna. I will see you later, when I am finished. Please leave."

"That's no way to treat your girlfriend." She pouted.

"Luna, you know that when I'm busy, I have to focus."

"So you're saying that your paperwork is more important than me?"

"That's not what I mean, but I need to get this done."

"But today is special Gill. Think for a second why would-"

"Luna, that's enough. Stop acting like child. You know you shouldn't disturb me when-"

"A CHILD? Who do you think I am?" Luna shouted furiously. Gill opened his mouth to speak but Luna continued to scold him. "You idiot. Today's our one month anniversary. I came to give you a present, but you can't even spend a minute away to talk to me. You know what it's always like this. You put your work first every single time. You never put me first. Never." Luna eyes flew to the ground, tears starting to form. Gill noticed the cerulean blue box in her hand for the first time. His hand reached out to grab it, when Luna jerked it out of reach. "What do you think you are doing?" she asked with a bitter voice.

"Well it was for me, wasn't it? I might as well take a look now, that I have been distracted from work." Gill reasoned.

Hatred and disgust filled Luna's eyes. She threw the box at the ground in frustration. "You jerk." She screamed as she slapped his cheek. His hand rubbed the spot where her hand had smacked. He could feel the sting from the slap, but it was nothing compared to a strange feeling inside of him. Luna turned and ran away. Her pink hair was flapping, and the daises that had once been perfectly placed were captured by the wind, joining the autumn leaves as the fluttered to the ground. Gill stood there watching. His body seemed frozen, until she could no longer be seen. Gill's gaze fell upon the blue box. He bent down to pick it up. A note was attached.

_Happy One season anniversary, Gilly. _

_I love you so much. Let's always be together. _

_I hope you like your present._

_-Your dearest Luna_

Gill's curiosity took over as he opened the box. His eyes widened. Inside was a sapphire brooch. Despite the fall it looked intact. Also inside was a container of royal jelly. He stared at the presents, filled with guilt_. I forgot, I'm so stupid. And to think she went out of her way to get me these things. _Gill stared at where Luna had run off to.

Gill snapped back out of his flashback. He was still on the bridge and looked up at the sky. It too was blue, just like her eyes. Gill looked away to find something that could distract him from the thought of her. His eyes wandered to the other edge of the bridge towards the waterwheel. He saw Toby and Renee together sitting happily next to each other fishing. Their laughter found its way to Gill's ears. Gill groaned. He couldn't stand the idea of love any more. He walked towards the ranch. He tended not to go near animals, for they were filthy creature, but anything was more pleasant to him now than the idea of love. Gill wandered towards the fields and saw a few horses grazing. He saw a mushroom on the ground, triggering another unfortunate memory.

It was the day after the anniversary. Gill had finally found Luna and was ready to apologize. He held a box out to her. She placed her annoyance aside and was ready to forgive him. A smile crept on her face as she slowly removed the pearl pink ribbon. The smile vanished instantly. "How could you!" she screamed. "Is this some kind of sick joke? You know I hate these things." She spat in a disgusted tone.

Gill was taken aback. He hadn't expected her to hate it. After all it sparkled. Girls liked sparkly things right? "What do you mean? It's a beautiful specimen."

"Gill do you not know anything about me. I hate fogue mushrooms."

"How was I supposed to know that you wouldn't like it?"

Luna stomped her foot on the ground in anger. "I know that you hate green peppers and all sorts of junk. I know that you love anything with tomatoes. I know so much about you. How could you not know anything about me?" She paused waiting for a reply, but Gill was at a loss for words. "Am I that unimportant to you" she asked quietly, with a subtle tone of heartbreak.

"Luna, that's not it at all. It's just um. Well uh." Gill couldn't swallow his pride. He couldn't tell her that he was a jerk that had screwed up. He couldn't admit anything was his fault, even though he knew with every fiber in his being, it was indeed his fault.

"Speak up Gill. You and I both know you hate beating around the bush, so out with it already." She said frustrated. Gill choked and words were stuck in his throat. "Gill we are through, don't ever bother talking to me again." Luna said with a cold voice. She turned and tears flowed down her cheeks. She kept her head down to prevent him from seeing her tears. She walked away, leaving Gill alone. Gill's eyes followed her and he began to follow her. He knew he had to follow her. The wind picked up and the leafs on the ground tumbled, striking the bottom of Gill's suit pants. He felt the contact and looked down. Specks of dirt were on his snow white pants, left by the tumbling leafs. Disgusted he brushed off the dirt. After he was satisfied he looked up again. Luna was nowhere to be seen. She had exited his life once again.

Gill's mind refocused on the horses in the fields. The flashbacks were painful. He wanted nothing more than to go back in time to the summer, when his and Luna's love was in full bloom. Their love was full of life and he could look forward to her smile every day. He shook his head once again. _I must get rid of these thoughts. Maybe it's for the best anyway. Luna deserves someone better than me. After all once I become mayor, I'll be too busy for a relationship._ He continued to feed himself lies. Deep inside he knew he and Luna should be together. Somewhere in him, he knew he loved her. His eyes glanced over to the horse track. Gill frowned at what he saw. Owen and Kathy were kissing, but not just kissing, they were practically eating each other's faces. Gill rolled his eyes in disgust and headed back towards the bridge. He passed a baby boar and they caught each other's eyes for a few seconds. The boar scampered away.

Gill took a few more steps, when a red leaf flew right into his hand. He examined it carefully. It was crimson red, like Luna's current outfit. In that moment Gill realized his buried feelings. He loved Luna. He wanted, no he needed to apologize. He needed her back with him. He missed everything about her. They belonged together. All Gill had to do was try harder. He could do and would do better. He clutched the leaf in his hand. His grip softened and the leaf flew gently out of his hand. The wind became stronger. His leaf along with many other leafs were swept up high. The wind blew them toward Fogue Forest. Gill couldn't explain it but he knew that he had to follow them. He ran after them into the forest. He saw a familiar flash of pink. Impossible Luna would never come here. But she was there sitting on a log, twirling a huge golden leaf. A leaf that's color matched Gill's signature crest on his vest. The leaf contained an odd shaped hole. A hole that looked like another leaf. Gill's eyes glanced up from Luna to the trail of leafs that had led him to her. The crimson one was fluttering to the ground and landed on Luna's lap. Gill wandered over to her. He placed his hand on her shoulder. She was startled and looked up at him, ready to yell, but Gill was prepared this time. He started to speak.

"Luna, I am a complete jerk and an idiot. I was a crappy boyfriend and I can and will do better, if you forgive me. I'm sorry Luna. You mean everything to me. I love you. Please take me back."

Luna looked away staring at the leafs in her possession. She placed the red one into the golden one. They fit perfectly. She stood up and hugged him. She buried her face into Gill's chest. "I love you too." She said. She then stood back and poked his chest. "But if you ever do anything like this again, you are going to be in big trouble. You hear me." Gill smiled at her. His smile was filled with genuine compassion and made Luna smile back. Gill grabbed her hand and led her along out of the forest. He stared at Luna, treasuring her presence. Fall doesn't mean things are dying. Fall doesn't have to be full of melancholy. Sure things changed a bit, but this was for the better, we are stronger now. All of this realization flooded into Gill as he and Luna headed towards the town. Just as the red leaf completed the golden leaf, Luna was Gill's missing puzzle piece. They were two leafs intertwined forever.

**Alterations: I would like to thank Cotton Candy Mareep and Iridescent Swan for their comments. I looked over the story a bit and made a few minor adjustments. There are probably still errors, but I was happy to edit some that were pointed out to me. Thanks again. **


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